Spoon-holder.



W. J. GIBBONS.

SPOON HOLDER.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 20, 1912.

1,952,81 3., 7 Patented Feb. 11,1913.

Fla: 1;

WITNESSES BiY INVENTOR WILLIAM J. GIBBONS, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

SPOON -HOLDER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 11, 1913.

Application filed June 20, 1912. Serial No. 704,776.

T 0 all whom z'tmay concern Be it known that I, lVILLIAM J. Gnmons, a citizen of the United States, residing in the city and county of Philadelphia, State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Spoon-Holders, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to holders adapted to hold spoons or other like articles.

The holder is of such character that the spoons or other like articles are held therein in nested position; that is, the spoons or other articles rest one upon the other.

One of the objects of'my invention is to provide a holder of compact substantial construction and in which the surface of the base thereof is so related to the holder as a whole that when the said hold r is resting upon its base it is very stable and is not easily over-turned.- By this provision I produce a holder which is specially adapted for use upon railway trains and vessels. It will be understood, however, that it is also adapted for use in houses where the tables or other supports upon which it may be placed are stationary.

A further object of my invention is to provide a construction of holder in which the chamber therein for the reception of the spoons or other like articles is so shaped and constructed as to cause the spoons to auto-- matically assume proper positions therein.

To these and other ends my invention comprehends the construction of holder hereinafter described in detail and specifi It is to be 1' understood, however, that changes in the details of construction may be made within the scope of the claims without departing from cally pointed out in the claims.

my invent-ion.

In order that my invention may be readily and clearly understood and comprehended reference should be had to the accompanying drawings, in which,

Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view of a holder constructed in accordance with my invention, and showing in edge elevation a number of spoons in position in the holder; Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the same; and Fig. 3 is a perspective view thereof.

Referring to the drawings, 1 designates the holder having achamber 2 formed therein for the reception of the spoons 3 or other like articles. Preferably the shape of the holder in a plane at right angles to its longitudinal axis is elliptical as is clearly apparent from the drawings but it should be understood that the contour of the said holder in transverse section may be varied to suit the desires and wishes of the manufacturer, purchaser or user.

It may be'noted here that the plane of the top of the holder is at right angles to the longitudinal axis of'the holder.

The chamber 2 which receives the spoons is partially closed by an over-hanging projection 4 the inner edge of which is curved as indicated at 5 in Figs. 2 and 3.

The edge of the lip is curved as illustrated to cause it to conform more or less to the transverse curvature of the bowl of the spoons.

Preferably, though not necessarily, the bottom of the holder is provided with an opening 6 to permit water to drain from the chamber 2 in case the spoons or other articles should be placed in the said chamber while wet. It is apparent, however, that the opening 6 is not necessary to the successful operation and use of the holder.

The holder is provided with a slot 7 in what may be termed, for purposes of description, its rear side wall in which the handles of the spoons or other articles are located, as is clearly shown in Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings.

The inside surface of the bottom of the holder is curved and inclined from the rear forwardly, as illustrated at 8 in Fig. 1, so that when a spoon or other article is. placed in position in the holder it slides forward with the 'result thatthe forward or tip end of the bowl of the spoon or other article presses with more or less force against the inner opposite surface of the chamber, as at 10. The inclination of the said surface begins practically at the lower end of the slot 7.

The inside surface of the forward wall of the holder where it is in contact with the tip ends of the spoons is so related to other parts of the structure that the angle between such surface and the spoons or other articles is preferably slightly acute as is illustrated in order that the ends of the spoons or other articles will bind against such surface and be thereby retained in position independent of the overhang or pro jection 4. Broadly stated, the angle between the articles in the holder and the surfaceof the holder with which the tip ends thereof contact should not be obtuse but should be either a right angle or an angle of less extent.

The bottom surface of the base of the holder is formed by cutting the holder on a plane inclined with respect to the longitudinal axis of the holder. In this way a relatively broad base for the holder is provided.

The surface is also cut upon such a plane with respect to the top surface of the holder that what may be termed the rear side of the holder is the longer or higher portion. This is desirable in order that the handle portions of the articles contained in the holder which project from this side of the holderwillnot cause it to tip over.

By providing the holder with a relatively wide base in the manner above described and by "forming the base surface of the holder at an angle'with respect to the top surface thereof, as is clearly shown in the drawings, a holder is produced having marked stability so that it cannot be readily overturned. The holder is thereby rendered desirable for use on railway trains, sea-going ships, or in any place Where the holder is liable to'be subjected to sudden jars or movements. This capacity does not, however, interfere with its usefulness in homes, hotels and other such places."

While in the construction shown, the spoons are held inplace independently of the overhang or projection 4, yet such projection is desirable to insure that the spoons will in all cases be properly retained and held in the holder.

Having thus described my invention, I claim I 1. A holder of the character described, having a chamber for the reception of spoons or other like articles, the said holder having a slotfor the reception of the handles of the spoons or other articles and the bottom surface of the said chamber being in clined from the rear toward the front whereby the said spoons or other like articles antomatically move into position with their tip ends in contact with the forward wall 2. A holder of the character described having a chamber for the reception of spoons or other like articles and the said holder having a slot for the reception of the handles of such spoons or other articles and the said holder at a point opposite the said slot having a projection which extends inwardly over the said chamber which projection is adapted to prevent the tilting of the spoons or other articles from the said chamber.

3. A holder of the character described, consisting of a member having a chamber therein for the reception of s'poonsor other like articles the base surface of the said holder being in a plane inclined with respect tothe longitudinal axis of the said holder.

4. A 'holder of the character described, consisting of a member having a chamber for the reception of spoons or other like articles the base surface of the said holder being in a plane inclined with respect to the longitudinal axis of the said holder and the top surface of the said holder being in a plane substantially at right angles to the .said axis, the planes of the said two surfaces converging toward the front of the said holder, whereby the rear portion of the said holder is of greater height than the front portion thereof.

5. A holder of the character described, consisting of a member having a chamber therein for holding spoons or like articles and the said member having a slot in its wall for the handles of said spoons or other like .articles and the said chamber being provided with an inclined curved surface beginning at the bottom of said slot and extending toward the opposite, side of said chamber.

' In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention, I have hereunto signed my name this 15th day of June, A. D. 1912. j WILLIAM J. GIBBONS. In the presence of 1 EDWARD J. FISHER, CARRIE E. KLEINFELDER. 

